Taking the Proper Approach to Big Data

As a new year begins, businesses in all industries across the world are strategizing how they can do better in 2014.

As a new year begins, businesses in all industries across the world are strategizing how they can do better in 2014. For a great many of them, this will involve the use of big data analytics and BI software platforms. The specific methods used by these companies will of course be different, though as always certain persistent trends will be identifiable.

The trends that will have the most impact will vary based on who in the industry you ask. According to ITBusinessEdge, some experts in the field identify increased organizational spending on big data and business intelligence projects to be the most significant common thread throughout the business world, while others are more focused on how personnel will be affected. Naturally, it will make the most sense to examine the validity of all of these points in terms of your company’s data needs, rather than accepting any one of them as gospel.

Potential effects on staff
Writing for ZDNet, big data blogger Andrew Brust stated that many in the industry believe that it will be more common for a wide range of a given business’s personnel to have a thorough knowledge and understanding of data and how it can be best applied. Basically, it may no longer be the sole province of experts on the subject, meaning that dedicated data scientists might not have as significant a role as they once did.

However, at the same time, SC Magazine predicted that the prevalence of privacy and security issues related to big data will necessitate the presence of experts on the subject. Those with a sophisticated knowledge of the regulations and laws that pertain to information sharing will be in high demand, the news source reported, and they are bound to be highly compensated for their skill sets, with salaries falling between $150,000 and $250,000.

Spending growth
ITBusinessEdge reported that some experts, including Inhi Suh, IBM vice president of big data, integration and governance, believe that significant spending on advanced analytics, reporting and other things tangential to big data will be the industry norm. Given the expanding role that concepts like predictive and prescriptive analytics are taking, this would seem, to many, to be a reasonable prediction to make.

This might also be concurrent with something of a relaxation of the attitude toward big data. It may no longer be viewed as the hot new thing it once was, but rather be more readily integrated into the operating environments of businesses and treated as a basic necessity.